Anyone who has experienced a lower back injury knows that the injury can render difficult many of the body movements that make up daily life. The simple act of putting on socks, for example, becomes small feat when your back hurts so much that you cannot lift your leg high enough for your arms to reach your toes. The same goes for people who are overweight or physically infirm. Persons in those categories may lack the physical strength or otherwise be physically incapable of sufficiently flexing their bodies to reach their feet.
There are, of course, devices to help people lift their feet. The most common are handheld poles or extensions, but those devices require the user to have at least a reasonable degree of dexterity and physical strength to work—characteristics that may be lacking in the physically infirm. There are also devices that can automatically elevate a leg, such as the device disclosed by U.S. Pat. No. 6,871,364. However, the prior art automatic lifts all appear to be directed to helping lift a user's legs, not feet. Many automatic lifts are also attached to another object such as a hospital bed or a wheelchair.